St JOHNSTONE strike hero Stevie May last night pledged to fire the Perth men to Europa League glory against Spartak Trnava.

The £800,000-rated Scotland Under 21 ace is being chased by Championship clubs Sheffield Wednesday and Rotherham.

May could be heading south over the weekend but the Saints talisman will blot out all thoughts of his future to focus on firing his hometown team into the Europa League play-offs.

Trailing 2-1 from the first leg at McDiarmid Park, May knows it will take a Herculean effort from Tommy Wright’s men to shock the Slovakians on home turf.

But he’s up for the challenge after a thigh muscle strain forced him out of the home leg.

Modest May said: “It would be great to score across there but this week isn’t about me, it’s about the team getting through to the next round in Europe.

“It’s nice to be talked about by other clubs because it shows you’re doing something right.

“But I’m a St Johnstone player and all I’m focused on is doing my bit for the team.

“The speculation doesn’t bother me, I just want to play football. It’s not something I think about. There is plenty of time to deal with things like that when we get back to Scotland.

“There’s no benefit getting yourself carried away with what might or might not happen, you just have to keep your head clear and focus on the game in hand.

Stevie checks in for flight to Bratislava

“I know how big this game is for the club and what it means to everyone, so we’re all desperate to get through.

“It means loads to everyone at St Johnstone. We’ve really enjoyed being in Europe the last few years and we don’t want it to end.”

Last term May scored against Norwegian cracks Rosenborg and slammed home a penalty against Swiss side Luzern in the previous round this season.

He said: “You don’t get too many chances to play in Europe throughout your career so you want to take them and do the best you can when they come around.

“We have a tough task because it’s hard to come from behind in Europe but we’re confident that we can turn things around from the first leg.

“If we get an early goal it will be game on but we know that even if we lose one nothing too much changes because we can take them to extra time.

“So there’s plenty there for us. We’ll give it our best shot and hopefully we can surprise a few people again.”

May insists Saints will treat the Slovakians with respect.

He said: “They looked a decent side but we showed in the second half that you can get at them. We created some chances and if we play the way we know we’re capable of we will give ourselves a chance.

“It’s not about rushing into anything, an early goal would be nice but even if we don’t get that the main thing is not to concede.

“We can be patient and try to score the two goals we need. We’ll have a game plan to do that and if we stick to it we should have a chance. It’s going to be tough. They are good technically. But if we can get a wee bit of luck along the way then we can do it.”

May squirmed his way through a painful Perth defeat and he’s eager to plunge a dagger into the Slovakians’ Euro ambitions.

He said: “It was tough watching the first game. I hate watching matches from the stand.

“I wasn’t far away from playing but it was a niggle and it ended up too much to risk.

“Missing the first leg has made me even more excited about this match. They are good players, very technical and dangerous opponents.

“I have played against the Slovakian Under 21s before and scored against them – so hopefully I can keep that run going.

“But the boys feel we should have done better last week and there’s a determination to do better.

“We don’t often put two performances like that together. We’re a strong group and it’s built into us to bounce back from disappointments. We’ve done it time and again over the last 18 months and we’ll try to do it again. We never give up.”

May might be facing a Saints swansong but if he lands a big-money move the striker knows he owes a huge debt of gratitude to St Johnstone boss and mentor Wright.

He added: “The manager has been great for me. He’s kept his word on everything he’s said.

“He gave me a chance and I took it. So I owe a lot to him for the influence he’s had on me.”